Chapter 830: Why Not Try Dual Cultivation

Chapter 830: Why Not Try Dual Cultivation

In truth, Ye Wuming had feigned a little... for if one did not give chase at the very first moment, pursuit was already impossible.

With Miao's power, once she descended as a god, she could traverse an unknowable distance in an instant, her direction beyond estimation. And they were beings not of this world—no one in the realm could calculate them, not even Ye Wuming.

Ye Wuming silently calculated, a deep perplexity gnawing at her. That had clearly been Miao, and she had even poured all her power into that man, yet no matter how she probed, she could not discern who he was.

His strength was roughly on par with the current Human Sovereign, Qinglong, but Qinglong could never earn such wholehearted support from Miao. Even if he were willing, he could not achieve such perfect, total reception—it required absolute mutual trust and the complete opening of one's soul to accept. Qinglong was out of the question; it would be a miracle if Miao didn't slap him...

And that man's fist, the intent it encompassed—why did it feel so familiar to her own...

Who was it?

Stranger still, no matter how she calculated, Miao was still holed up in Luoshui forging swords...

Ye Wuming lifted her head to gaze at the stars, murmuring to herself, "Not in the present, not in the past... Could he be a future Human Sovereign..."

The two who had left even the all-powerful Blind One utterly baffled plunged headlong into a celestial river, bobbing and sinking in the currents, looking for all the world like specters on the Styx.

Both were wounded. Zhao Changhe was naturally weakened, but Miao was no better off—she had temporarily transferred all her power to Zhao Changhe, unable to withstand the backlash from the transmitted force, and was injured as well. Fortunately, Ye Wuming's strike had no follow-through; Miao quickly reclaimed her power and fled with Zhao Changhe in an instant, or else both might have perished there.

Only by combining the strength of Zhao Changhe and Miao at this moment could they barely withstand a single blow, and both were wounded...

This was the ancient Heavenly Emperor, Ye Wuming.

A figure at the very apex of the pyramid, whose presence dominated seventy or eighty percent of all legends across the ages—to call her a suppressor of ten thousand eras seemed not an exaggeration.

Of course, the comparison was unfair; both were at a severe disadvantage without physical bodies. Otherwise, Miao alone could have made Ye Wuming tread carefully, and killing Miao would have required waiting until she was exhausted and striking by stealth... Zhao Changhe, meanwhile, focused on body forging and blade work, had always been relatively weak in the soul.

Regardless, the feeling of surviving such a brush with death was both thrilling and exhilarating. Zhao Changhe lay flat in the river, drifting aimlessly, and sighed wearily, "Never thought I'd actually snatch something from that blind old hag's hands. Getting beaten was worth it—damn, that felt good!"

The excitement in his tone was genuine, and Miao, feeling a kindred spirit, was in a good mood too. Whether Ye Wuming had held back or not, snatching something from her grasp was a feat in any era, and this vengeance carried a satisfying sense of collecting a bit of interest.

Especially since... everyone knew Zhao Changhe had a peculiar relationship with Ye Wuming, one that could even manifest in the environment of Papiyan. Miao had truly been uncertain how Zhao Changhe would lean between her and Ye Wuming. But that single fist had dispelled all doubt.

He could truly give his all, helping her collect interest from Ye Wuming.

A rare, relaxed, and cheerful smile spread across Miao's usually expressionless face. "Why do you call her a blind old hag? What story lies between you two?"

"Uh, let's keep that secret for now... It's really not important." Zhao Changhe turned his head to look at her smile. "Smile more—that's what matters. You look beautiful."

"...Didn't you say you liked the demonic form better, that it was cuter?" Miao immediately withdrew her smile, her face stern. "So tell me, which of your words is true?"

"But this is the first time I've seen you smile so happily—I had no comparison." Zhao Changhe said, "Now that I've seen it, I still think smiling is prettier."

Miao snorted, "Smooth talker. Is this how you tricked Yangyang?"

"The way I tricked Yangyang is the same way you tricked me back in the human world."

Miao: "?"

"It's about eating soft... well, it's about the feeling of being protected." As Zhao Changhe spoke, he unconsciously drifted closer.

Miao kicked him away. "Then go die. Who would protect a lecher like you?"

But the kick didn't land; her hand was already caught.

Miao tried to shake him off. "Let go!"

"I've been holding it all day, and you never seemed to want to let go." Zhao Changhe finally pulled her into a full embrace. "Stop it... we're injured, rest a while."

Miao didn't struggle, letting his head rest on her shoulder. Her right hand lifted instinctively, as if to hold him, but hesitated and lowered it.

She murmured softly, "Don't get any ideas..."

"What do you take me for..." Zhao Changhe looked around. "Where is this? We're in terrible shape—don't let someone pick us off like easy prey."

Miao said, "This is the Celestial River... in the mortal world, it's the Milky Way they gaze up at, manifested in the heavens as this stream. In your era, it seems no one discovered this river; it may have vanished."

Zhao Changhe's heart stirred. This river had a certain affinity with his martial intent—worth studying.

Speaking of which, if there were heavenly soldiers here, was there a Marshal Tianpeng...

It seemed the starry river was not merely the cosmic galaxy he knew; in the celestial realm, it had its own corresponding manifestations. But now, as the two lay quietly in the river's center, stars blazed above them as well—what were these stars, a nesting doll?

"It might not have vanished entirely. There are still many places we haven't found—even the White Tiger remains missing—and perhaps they're connected to this." Zhao Changhe, feeling the strain of his injuries sapping his energy, asked, "Is this river dangerous? Can we heal here?"

"Yes. Once you enter the Celestial River, you're invisible even at arm's length. In terms of space, each ripple is separated by endless distances, each containing its own world, unseen by others. That's why I chose to descend here—it's safe."

This seemed to align with the cosmic Milky Way. Zhao Changhe found it fascinating and gazed upward in thought.

As night deepened, the river's mist thickened, obscuring all sense of place. Silence reigned—no sound of flowing water, no chirping of insects, a stillness like the abyss.

Only two wounded souls clung together, drifting on the Celestial River, watching the stars above.

Souls have no breath, no heartbeat. Even their embrace was a deliberate act of solidifying their spirit bodies, forcing a sense of mutual reliance. Amid the cold, desolate quiet, they barely conjured a trace of human warmth—otherwise, they would be nothing but wandering ghosts adrift on the river.

But Miao seemed accustomed to such vast loneliness. She had already begun to meditate and heal herself, ethereal mist swirling around her, making her appear even more like a celestial being.

Zhao Changhe, however, was deeply unsettled by this eerie stillness. After a long while of restless distraction, he couldn't help but prop himself up slightly to study Miao as she lay on the water's surface.

She was truly breathtaking.

He couldn't blame her for doubting his words... Back then, his declarations of liking and pursuit—he himself didn't know if they were real. Only now did he truly feel that heart-thumping sensation, both from her appearance and from the way she interacted with him in her restored, gentle nature.

Outwardly domineering and stern, inwardly soft and protective.

It seemed the very essence of mountains and rivers should be like this—when embodied in a person, it resonated perfectly with him.

The wild, unruly antics of her demonic form now seemed like flirtatious banter in retrospect, and the thought alone made his lips curl into an unconscious smile.

Miao, eyes still closed, suddenly spoke. "What are you doing..."

Zhao Changhe coughed. "Nothing... just restless, so I'm watching you... consider it guarding you. Aren't you meditating?"

"Who could meditate with such staring?" Miao opened her eyes. "Zhao Changhe, you're disturbing my peace of mind."

Her words sounded like reproach, but her gaze was soft, without a hint of anger—rather, it held a shimmering ripple, unreadable.

Could it be that her heart was also unsettled just now?

"I... we..." Zhao Changhe paused, mustering his courage, and whispered, "We have no medicine here, and self-healing is slow... Why not... try dual cultivation?"

A hint of anger finally flickered in Miao's eyes.

"No, no..." Zhao Changhe stammered, "We don't have physical bodies anyway. Dual cultivation isn't about that—it's soul merging. If you think merging in human form would be awkward, like embracing, we could disperse into mist..."

"Self-deception." Miao turned her head away. "You're clearly just lusting after me. I suspect your body back in the temple is reacting right now."

Zhao Changhe remained silent. You see right through me.

He never expected her attitude to be so soft... so utterly different from when she faced the Sea Emperor and others—the contrast was stark.

He said nothing, and Miao kept her head turned, neither of them making a move to disperse into mist. The silence returned.

Zhao Changhe couldn't help but slowly lower his head, his lips drawing closer.

Miao pursed her lips, her eyelids fluttering slightly, and finally closed her eyes.

Their spirit bodies met, lips pressed together in a kiss.

"You might be driven by lust," Miao murmured, "but I think I like you... You've ruined me..."

Zhao Changhe didn't answer. He held her tightly, kissing her with abandon.

Miao tilted her neck back slightly and whispered, "Just soul dual cultivation—don't do anything improper..."

Normal spirit bodies couldn't do such things. Solidifying only allowed for external appearance, not the structure of a physical body, and no one would be foolish enough to deliberately stiffen their spirit body's member—how absurd would that be? Miao was genuinely afraid this madman might try it, so she made a point to warn him.

It turned out that Zhao Changhe was not really that bored, merely instinctively undoing the ethereal sash that Piaomiao had conjured.

Piaomiao weakly pushed back once, then finally sighed, not bothering to cancel the illusion, letting him complete this process of undressing.

After all... it wasn't as if he hadn't seen her before, and that time she had been bound in chains...

In the end, they stood bare before each other, embracing and kissing, doing nothing yet equally lost in passion.

Before they knew it, they were tumbling into the river, mist swirling around them like the gauze curtains of a bridal chamber.

Zhao Changhe felt a strange familiarity with the scene... That's right, a few days ago he had dreamed something like this—entwined with Piaomiao in some indistinct place, yet it didn't feel quite real, all hazy and vague. So this was what it meant...

So that wasn't a dream either; it was a foreknowledge of a future fragment?

The River of Time, which sees both past and future—that is the mark of truly stepping into the hall.

But why didn't it foretell something important, instead predicting this... What was the trigger... If he could find that key, maybe he could learn to see the future himself.

Thinking this, Zhao Changhe suddenly wanted to slap himself twice.

When she was meditating, his mind had wandered. Now, in the midst of intimacy, he was thinking about cultivation.

What a lunatic.

Stop it. Let's dual cultivate and heal.

...

The next morning, Zhao Changhe woke a little earlier than Piaomiao.

After dual cultivation, they naturally fell into a meditative state. Logically, Piaomiao's cultivation was higher, so she should have awakened faster, but it was Zhao Changhe who did.

He took a rough stock and found it seemed related to the aura of the Heavenly River.

A large part of Zhao Changhe's cultivation intent, especially his blade intent, was built on the momentum of the Milky Way cascading from the heavens. This river was the very one they were in now, its meaning resonating with his. In theory, this could count as a home ground? He felt that cultivating here could strengthen his blade intent and compensate for his weakness in the soul aspect.

Time was tight here; he couldn't stay long. After returning, he should seek out this river as a secluded place for the next stage of cultivation.

Speaking of cultivation... Zhao Changhe found that his own had improved again, reaching the peak of the second realm of Yu.

No wonder—after truly dual cultivating with Piaomiao, who was at the third realm of Yu, it would be strange if he hadn't improved. Barring surprises, Piaomiao should have improved too.

Zhao Changhe looked down at Piaomiao's sleeping face, serene and gentle.

Strictly speaking, this was the first real time with Piaomiao... Before this, their ill-fated encounters had all used Yangyang's face. This was the first time he had united with Piaomiao's own appearance, and the first time she had willingly joined with him.

Of course, it was because of those ill-fated encounters—having already done it—that they had come to this relationship.

But what he had gained was a treasure... How fortunate he was.

As if feeling his gaze, Piaomiao finally woke, and they looked at each other again.

After a moment's pause, Piaomiao's soul-body flushed, and she turned her head away, not looking at him. She instantly conjured her clothes and muttered softly, "You're nothing but a lecher—even taking off a soul-body's clothes. I must have been blind to think you were a hero."

Zhao Changhe embraced her from behind, whispering in her ear, "This is just the joy of a married couple in their private chamber—what lecher?"

"Who's a married couple? I'm not Yangyang."

"Shall we perform the wedding ceremony? Let's bow to Heaven and Earth." As Zhao Changhe said this, he suddenly paused. In this world, bowing to Heaven and Earth—did it mean bowing to Ye Wuming above and Piaomiao below?

Wouldn't that make bowing to Heaven and Earth and the couple's bow to each other redundant?

This involved Ye Wuming, so he couldn't say it to Piaomiao. Piaomiao herself didn't expect him to be pondering such a trivial question. She only said, "I don't need that... Save that ceremony for your human wives, like Miss Li."

Zhao Changhe didn't know why Piaomiao always inexplicably got jealous of Ye Jiuyou. He said with a wry smile, "There's nothing between her and me."

"Hmph, that's hard to say. Anyway, she's one of the people who set me up." Now that she had calmed down, Piaomiao could naturally guess that Ye Jiuyou's arrangement for her and Zhao Changhe to find Poxun together was not entirely well-intentioned.

Zhao Changhe said, "Then I should thank her."

Piaomiao snorted, "I'll settle accounts with her myself."

She paused, then dropped the subject and changed the topic: "My cultivation has actually improved... I thought my cultivation had nothing to do with any conventional path, but it turns out it can really advance."

Zhao Changhe said, "As long as yin and yang are in harmony, it's naturally possible. No matter how special you are, how can you escape this framework? Besides, your cultivation is far from its peak. If you want to beat Ye Wuming later, we can dual cultivate more after we return..."

"Who wants to dual cultivate with you? When I return, I'll be a little black ball—I won't meet you in this form."

Zhao Changhe thought of that adorable little black ball and couldn't help but smile: "What about the lotus platform?"

"I've hidden it using the mustard-seed-into-Sumeru method, otherwise its aura would be too strong and cause trouble. After we return, we'll figure out how to evolve a physical body..." Piaomiao suddenly stopped speaking.

Zhao Changhe asked curiously, "Why did you stop? Actually, I feel that since we have the lotus platform, shaping a physical body shouldn't be hard. I have some confidence. Back then, a mere first-realm Yu cultivator, using the Book of Life, could evolve a body from a single drop of blood. Our conditions now are much better, and our cultivation and understanding of laws are on a completely different level. There shouldn't be much of a problem."

Piaomiao thought to herself that it wasn't a question of whether it was possible, but rather that she didn't know who the physical body would actually be for now... It seemed to mean more to him than to her.

This feeling was really strange, and she couldn't say it directly, so she changed the subject: "Since the injuries are healed, shall we go to the Demon Illusion Realm to look at the Soul-Capturing Mirror? Getting back is still our primary goal. If we can't return, everything else is meaningless."

Zhao Changhe said, "It's just our guess that we can return through the Soul-Capturing Mirror—it might not be true... But sharpening the axe won't delay the woodcutting. I want to stay here one more day."

"To consolidate your cultivation? This place does suit you well."

"More importantly, I've discovered a clue about foreseeing the future before. I need to study it... Other directions are too broad. I'll take whether we can return as a benchmark and try to divine the omens of fortune or misfortune. Maybe I can find the exact method."